Oct 20, 2017

Obama condemns divisive politics, without name-checking Trump

Erica Pandey, author of @Work

Former President Barack Obama, right, greets Virginia's Democratic gubernatorial candidate Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam. Photo: Steve Helber / AP

We have politicians trying to "get the base all riled up because it provides a short-term tactical advantage," Barack Obama said at a campaign rally for Ralph Northam, the Democratic nominee for Virginia governor, Thursday night, saying America had to aspire to a better form of politics.

  • "If you had to win a campaign by dividing people, you're not gonna be able to govern them," he added. "You won't be able to unite them later, if that's how you start."
  • "Folks don't feel good right now about what they see. They don't feel as if our public life reflects our best."

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Coronavirus dashboard

Photo Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photos: Noam Galai, Jamie McCarthy, Josep Lago/AFP, Alfredo Estrella/AFP, and Narayan Maharjan/NurPhoto, all via Getty Images

  1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 12:30 p.m. ET: 6,206,773 — Total deaths: 372,752 — Total recoveries — 2,661,643 — Map.
  2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 12:30 p.m. ET: 1,793,780 — Total deaths: 104,345 — Total recoveries: 444,758 — Total tested: 16,936,891 — Map.
  3. Public health: Fauci says“My meetings with the president have been dramatically decreased” — Coronavirus looms over George Floyd protests across the country.
  4. Climate: Your guide to comparing climate change and coronavirus.
  5. Economy: A busy week for IPOs despite upheaval from protests and pandemic.
  6. World: Former FDA commissioner says "this is not the time" to cut ties with WHO.
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